Hard bop, hip hop, free jazz, groove, electro, calypso, experimental or Caribbean: the key players of the new British jazz scene are open to everything. They know their classics like the back of their hands though they certainly don’t hold back from exploring all kinds of genres, making for a wonderfully eclectic sound. We look back over ten essential albums.

Billie Holiday, the Dark Blues

A soul drenched in blues, a broken heart and a battered body, Billie Holiday is still the ultimate representation of silk-laced suffering. A century after her birth, Lady Day is still undeniably the most iconic singer in the history of jazz music.

Blue Note in 10 Albums

The most famous of all jazz labels had it all! Five-star artists, original repertoires, ingenious associate artistic directors, exceptional sound recording, sublime album covers, a variety of genres (Bebop, Hard Bop, Soul Jazz, Modal Jazz, Free Jazz)… The label was launched in 1939 by Francis Wolff and Alfred Lion, two Germans who had fled the Nazi regime, and had everything going for it. Qobuz has picked 10 key albums from its ample catalogue. Some of them are celebrated classics. Others are underrated marvels. But all of them played a vital role in shaping Blue Note as a label.